THE  WHITE-TAILED  DEER 


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■■  V  .\.  -^ 


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FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY 


CHICAGO 
1922 


Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 

DEPARTMENT  OF  ZOOLOGY 
Chicago,  1922 


Lbavuct  NUMBm  1 

The  White-Tailed  Deer 

The  common  deer  of  eastern  North  America  was 
one  of  the  first  of  our  large  mammals  to  be  brought  to 
the  attention  of  early  settlers.  Although  originally 
abundant  in  Massachusetts  and  other  parts  of  New 
England,  it  seems  to  have  been  reported  especially 
from  Virginia  by  early  French  writers  who  called  it 
Cerf  de  Virginie.  It  was  then  given  the  scientific  name 
Cervns  virginianus  and  so  came  to  be  known  generally 
as  the  Virginia  Deer.  In  later  years  this  name  proved 
to  be  misleading,  for  the  same  species  of  deer,  or  vari- 
eties differing  slightly  in  size  and  color,  was  found  to 
be  present  not  only  in  Virginia  but  over  most  of  the 
eastern  and  central  United  States.  Another  name  for 
it,  therefore,  has  gradually  come  into  use,  the  name 
White-tailed  Deer.  This  is  frequently  shortened  to 
Whitetail,  which  is  a  very  appropriate  name,  for  the 
deer's  tail  is  entirely  white  on  the  under  side  and  when 
held  erect,  as  the  animal  dashes  through  the  woods,  is 
very  conspicuous.  The  upper  side  of  the  tail,  however, 
is  not  white  but  reddish  brown  or  gray  the  same  as  the 
back  and  sides  of  the  body. 

The  White-tailed  Deer  withstands  the  advance  of 
civilization  much  better  than  most  of  our  larger  mam- 
mals and  is  still  common  over  much  of  its  original 
range.  In  Pennsylvania,  Virginia,  and  in  parts  of  New 
York  and  New  England,  where  elk,  bison,  bears,  cou- 
guars  and  wolves  have  completely  disappeared,  the 
Whitetail  still  flourishes.  This,  of  course,  is  mainly  on 
account  of  the  protection  afforded  by  good  game  laws, 

[11 


2  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 

but  it  is  also  due  in  part  to  the  animal's  habits  which 
are  very  adaptable.  It  will  often  maintain  itself  for 
years  in  a  small  piece  of  woodland  only  a  few  square 
miles  in  extent.  Its  original  range  included  all  of  eas- 
tern North  America  from  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Law- 
rence River  west  to  the  Rocky  Mountains  and  south  to 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  Throughout  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illi- 
nois and  most  of  Missouri,  Kansas  and  Nebraska,  it  is 
now  wholly  exterminated,  but  elsewhere  it  remains 
common  wherever  there  is  sufficient  cover  for  it  to 
exist.  Except  in  the  extreme  western  part  of  its  range 
it  is  the  only  species  of  deer  to  be  found.  In  southern 
Michigan  and  southern  Wisconsin  it  has  retreated  be- 
fore civilization  and  intensive  cultivation  of  the  land, 
but  in  the  northern  parts  of  these  states  it  is  exceed- 
ingly abundant.  In  Illinois,  it  is  probably  entirely  ex- 
tinct, although  as  recently  as  1909  it  was  reported  from 
Union  and  Alexander  counties  in  the  extreme  southern 
part  of  the  state. 

The  whitetails  of  the  eastern  United  States  are 
divided  into  several  varieties  or  subspecies,  as  follows : 
The  Virginia  Whitetail  (Odocoileus  virginianus) , 
which  is  of  medium  size  and  is  now  found  principally 
in  Virginia,  West  Virginia  and  the  Carolinas;  the 
Northern  Whitetail  {Odocoileus  v.  borealis),  which  is 
the  largest  variety  and  which  ranges  from  Maine  and 
New  Brunswick  westward  at  least  to  Manitoba;  the 
Plains  Whitetail  (Odocoileus  v.  macrourus),  which  is 
said  to  have  an  unusually  long  tail  and  which  formerly 
inhabited  river  bottoms  throughout  the  Great  Plains 
region,  but  is  now  almost  extinct ;  the  Florida  Whitetail 
{Odocoileus  v.  osceola),  which  is  the  smallest  variety 
and  is  confined  to  Florida;  and  the  Louisiana  White- 
tail  {Odocoileus  v.  louisianae) ,  which  is  relatively 
large  in  size  and  inhabits  the  lowlands  of  Louisiana 
and  eastern  Texas.    Besides  these  of  the  United  States 

[2] 


The  White-Tailed  Deer  8 

there  are  various  other  whitetails,  or  closely  allied 
species,  inhabiting  Mexico,  Central  America  and  north- 
em  South  America.  Thus,  the  whitetails,  as  a  group, 
have  a  more  extensive  distribution  than  any  other 
American  deer. 

Perhaps  because  it  is  so  common  and  so  well 
known,  the  Whitetail  does  not  always  get  full  credit 
for  its  grace  and  beauty  which  are  scarcely  excelled  by 
any  other  member  of  the  deer  family  either  in  America 
or  in  the  Old  World.  No  prettier  woodland  picture 
ever  greets  the  nature  lover's  eye  than  that  of  our  own 
deer  as  it  threads  its  way  along  its  forest  trail  or  steps 
alertly  at  nightfall  from  the  green  depths  to  the  open 
border  of  lake  or  stream.  When  in  motion,  especially 
when  not  alarmed,  it  has  an  ease  and  grace  beyond  that 
of  any  other  of  our  game  animals.  Its  normal  gait  is 
that  of  running  or  trotting  and,  although  it  can  and 
does  make  great  leaps,  it  does  not  "bound"  with  all  four 
feet  striking  the  ground  at  once  as  do  the  western 
Blacktails  or  Mule  Deer.  If  slightly  startled,  it  moves 
away  in  low,  springy  jumps  alternated  at  short  inter- 
vals with  single  high  leaps,  the  entire  movement  being 
characterized  by  an  indescribable  grace  and  resiliency. 
Meanwhile  the  head  and  long,  flashing,  white  tail  are 
held  erect  and  the  whole  effect  as  the  animal  appears 
and  reappears  among  the  trees  and  bushes  makes  a 
beautiful  sight. 

The  outward  appearance  of  the  Whitetail  shows 
marked  differences  with  the  change  of  the  seasons.  In 
summer  its  hair  is  relatively  short  and  thin  and  the 
color  of  its  coat  is  rich  reddish  rufous.  On  this  ac- 
count, it  has  sometimes  erroneously  been  called  Red 
Deer,  a  name  which  properly  belongs  to  a  very  differ- 
ent European  species.  This  red  coat  is  worn  during  the 
warm  months  from  May  until  September  in  the  period 
when  the  horns  are  attaining  their  annual  growth. 

18] 


T     '*     'V     .^       ?      >       f      I.  •.■♦       \      1 


Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 


Doubtful 


1.  Florence. 

IS.  Langlade. 

M  Pierce. 

U,  Dodge. 

i.  Forest. 

IS.  Oconto. 

37  Buffalo. 

U.  Columbia 

J.  Vilas. 

20.  Marinette. 

38.  Trempealeau 

M.  Sauk. 

4.  Oneid*. 

21.  Door. 

3S.  Jackson 

S7  RkhUnd. 

J.  Price. 

a.  Kewaunee. 

40.  La  Crosse. 

58.  Vernon. 

e..lron. 

a.  Brown. 

41.  Monroe. 

59.  Crawford 

T.  Aehland. 

24.  Outazamie. 

42.  Juneiu. 

00.  Grant. 

(inc.  Apostle  Isls.)  25.  Sh«w«no. 

43.  Adams. 

•1.  Iowa. 

1  B«yfiel4. 

20.  Waupaca. 

44.  Waushara. 

02.  Dane. 

>.  Dous>*s. 

'27.  Marathon. 

4S.  Atarquette 

A3.  Jefferson. 

iO.  Burnett 

28.  Portage. 

48.  Grech  Lake. 

84.  Waukesha. 

IL  Washburn. 

St.  Wood. 

47  Fond  du  Lac 

86.  Xilwaakee. 

U.  Sawyer. 

30.  Clark- 

48.WinimMSO. 

88.  Racine. 

11.  Polk. 

Si.  Chippewa. 

4>.  Calumet. 

87.  Kenosha. 

14.  Barron. 

|S2.  Eau  Cteir* 

M.  Manitowoc. 

88.  Walworth 

1&.  Rusk  Of  Gates, 

3S,  Dunn. 

»l.  Sheboygan. 

ea.  Rock. 

18.  Taylor. 

B4.  Pepin. 

U.  Ozaukee. 

70.  Green. 

17.  Lincoln. 

l35.  SL  Croix. 

U.  Washington. 

71.  Lafayette. 

Present  Range  of  White-Tailed  Deer  in  Wisconsin 

From  Cory's  Mammals  of  Illinois  and  Wisconsin 


[4] 


The  White-Tailed  Deer  6 

In  the  fall  it  is  replaced  by  a  beautiful  gray  coat  which 
gradually  grows  longer  and  thicker  as  cold  weather 
comes  on  until  in  midwinter  it  is  full  and  heavy,  form- 
ing an  ample  protection  against  the  severest  weather. 
In  spring  this  coat  is  more  brownish  in  color  and  after 
the  long  winter  is  apt  to  have  a  ragged  and  faded  ap- 
pearance, especially  just  before  it  is  shed  and  followed 
by  the  reddish  summer  coat.  The  fa^vns,  which  usually 
are  bom  in  May  or  June,  are  reddish  like  the  adults  at 
the  same  season,  but  are  beautifully  spotted  with 
white.  Late  in  the  fall  when  the  first  coat  is  shed,  the 
fawns  lose  their  spots  and  become  grayish.  Two  fawns 
are  commonly  born  at  a  time  and  rarely  there  are 
three.  Young  does,  as  a  rule,  produce  only  one  fawn 
and  the  number  varies  somewhat  in  different  parts  of 
the  country.  Male  fawns  follow  their  mother  for  the 
first  year  and  females  often  do  so  for  two  years. 

Like  other  members  of  the  deer  family,  the  White- 
tail  sheds  and  renews  its  horns  annually.  The  does, 
or  females,  never  have  horns,  but  the  bucks  grow  a 
new  pair  every  year.  The  shedding  takes  place  in  late 
winter  or  early  spring  and  there  is  a  short  period  at 
this  time,  therefore,  when  there  are  no  horns  in  either 
sex.  The  mature  horns,  which  are  carried  through  the 
winter,  simply  drop  off  and  fall  to  the  ground,  leaving 
only  the  slight  bony  knob  or  pedicel  from  which  they 
grew.  Almost  immediately  new  horns  begin  to  grow, 
appearing  at  first  as  soft  prominences  covered  with 
the  peculiar  fuzzy  skin  which  is  known  as  the  "vel- 
vet." They  rapidly  elongate  and  send  out  branches 
which  are  nourished  by  a  copious  supply  of  blood  flow- 
ing under  the  protecting  velvet.  In  a  few  months  their 
growth  is  practically  completed  and  except  for  their 
velvet  covering  and  the  club-shaped  tips,  which  harden 
last,  they  have  much  the  appearance  of  mature  antlers. 
Early  in  the  fall,  usually  in  September,  the  bucks  rub 
their  antlers  against  trees  and  bushes  and  the  velvet 


6  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 

comes  off  in  bloody  strips  and  shreds  until  the  fully 
hardened,  smooth  horn  is  exposed  and  ready  for  the 
running  and  fighting  which  takes  place  soon  after. 
The  antlers  vary  in  size  and  form  according  to  the  age 
of  the  animal.  The  young  buck  in  his  second  year  has 
only  simple  unbranched  prongs  and  therefore  is  called 
a  "spike"  or  "spikebuck."  In  his  third  year,  several 
additional  points  are  gained  but  the  antlers  are  rela- 
tively small.  Full  development  of  the  gracefully  curved 
and  branched  antlers  comes  in  the  fourth,  fifth,  and 
sixth  years  when  the  bucks  are  in  their  prime.  With 
advancing  years,  the  antlers  may  continue  of  fair  size 
but  they  are  less  regular  in  shape,  have  fewer  points, 
and  are  said  to  be  "going  back."  The  normal  life  of 
these  deer  is  seldom  over  ten  years. 

The  habits  of  the  Whitetail  vary  somewhat  ac- 
cording to  the  region  it  inhabits,  but  it  always  fre- 
quents the  thickest  cover  available.  In  our  northern 
states,  it  haunts  the  deep  forest,  the  thickets  of  alders 
and  willows  bordering  streams,  and  the  dense  growths 
in  swampy  flatlands.  In  summer,  like  its  big  cousin, 
the  moose,  the  Whitetail  feeds  to  some  extent  on 
aquatic  plants  to  secure  which  it  wades  about  shallow 
coves  in  lakes  and  ponds.  It  does  this  in  broad  day- 
light in  remote  regions  where  it  is  undisturbed,  but 
where  man  frequently  crosses  its  path,  it  keeps  to  cover 
during  the  day  and  only  ventures  into  the  open  in*  the 
darkness  of  night.  It  is  an  excellent  swimmer  and  will 
voluntarily  cross  large  lakes.  When  pressed  by  wolves 
or  dogs  it  frequently  takes  to  the  water.  It  has  even 
been  found  swimming  in  the  sea  from  island  to  island 
or  point  to  point  on  the  coast  of  New  England.  It 
makes  good  time  in  the  water,  but  unless  it  has  too 
much  of  a  start  can  be  overtaken  by  good  paddlers  with 
a  canoe.  Aquatic  plants  form  only  part  of  its  food 
during  the  summer,  for  it  eats  a  variety  of  browse  in- 

[6] 


The  White-Tailed  Deer  T 

eluding  many  tender  shoots  of  small  bushes  and  it  is 
by  no  means  averae  to  grazing  when  the  marsh  grass  is 
abundant. 

In  the  fall,  the  deer  usually  move  to  higher  ground 
and  often  spend  much  time  in  tracts  of  burnt-over  land 
where  the  second  growth  affords  good  cover.  When 
beechnuts  or  acorns  are  available,  they  feed  extensively 
on  them  and  become  very  sleek  and  fat.  At  this  season, 
the  bucks  clear  their  horns  of  velvet,  their  necks  grow 
thickened  and,  as  the  rutting  or  mating  season  ap- 
proaches, they  become  restless  and  roving.  The  period 
of  the  rut  extends  from  late  October  to  early  Decem- 
ber and  is  a  time  of  great  activity,  especially  for  the 
bucks,  which  range  far  and  wide  in  search  of  the  does. 
When  two  bucks  meet,  a  fight  is  almost  a  certainty  and 
if  they  are  well  matched,  the  contest  may  last  several 
hours.  They  rush  together  head  on  and,  after  locking 
horns,  push  each  other  backward  and  forward  with 
mouths  open  and  eyes  glaring  until  one  or  the  other 
acknowledges  defeat  by  leaving  the  field  to  his  adver- 
sary. They  seldom  gore  each  other  seriously  and  usu- 
ally suffer  only  bruising  and  temporary  exhaustion, 
but  occasionally  there  are  fights  to  the  death.  Not  in- 
frequently their  antlers  become  inextricably  locked 
and  the  poor  beasts,  unable  to  loose  themselves  or  to 
take  nourishment,  struggle  to  the  point  of  total  ex- 
haustion and  death.  Evidences  of  these  tragedies  are 
found  in  the  weathered  skeletons  with  the  bound 
antlers  attached.  Probably  they  are  less  frequent  than 
might  be  supposed  from  the  number  of  sets  of  locked 
antlers  which  are  offered  for  sale  by  taxidermists  and 
curio  dealers,  since  it  is  not  difficult  for  the  unscrupu- 
lous to  spring  separate  antlers  into  a  locked  position. 

The  antlers  of  the  Whitetail  may  be  distinguished 
from  those  of  other  American  deer  by  several  charac- 
teristics.   The  two  main  branches  or  beams  have  a 

(71 


8  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 

pronounced  forward  curve  and  the  points  all  rise  from 
the  back  and  top  of  these  beams  almost  perpendicu- 
larly. The  pair  of  points  nearest  the  base  of  the  beams 
are  much  longer  and  more  upright  than  in  other  Am- 
erican deer.  The  number  of  points  is  variable  but  nor- 
mally a  full  grown  buck  has  five  or  six  well-developed 
points  on  each  side,  making  ten  or  twelve  in  all.  Ab- 
normal heads  may  have  several  times  as  many,  and  in 
very  unusual  cases  there  have  been  known  to  be  as 
many  as  seventy-eight  points. 

The  Whitetail,  especially  in  the  northern  part  of 
its  range,  often  finds  the  winter  season  a  great  hard- 
ship. The  deep  snows  do  not  prevent  it  from  feeding, 
for  it  is  able  to  browse  upon  twigs  and  to  paw  the  snow 
away  to  secure  other  food  in  protected  places ;  but  snow 
interferes  greatly  with  its  freedom  of  movement  and 
makes  it  an  easy  prey  to  its  arch  enemy,  the  wolf. 
When  the  snow  is  deep,  the  deer  range  within  very  nar- 
row limits  and  beat  down  paths  which  are  followed  day 
after  day  until  a  space  of  several  acres  may  be  covered 
with  a  network  of  them.  Such  places  are  called  "yards" 
and  the  deer  may  congregate  in  one  of  them  in  num- 
bers from  two  or  three  to  a  dozen  or  more.  When 
forced  to  leave  the  yard  by  dogs  or  wolves  they  floun- 
der in  the  drifts  and  are  easily  overtaken.  When  the 
snow  is  slightly  hardened  on  the  surface,  a  form  of 
hunting  called  "crusting"  is  sometimes  practiced  by 
meat  hunters  with  snowshoes  which  support  them 
while  the  deer  with  their  sharp  hoofs  break  through 
at  every  leap.  Needless  to  say,  crusting  is  considered 
quite  unsportsmanlike. 

Among  the  different  varieties  of  the  Whitetail 
found  in  the  United  States  there  is  much  variation  in 
size.  The  northern  variety  is  much  the  largest,  and 
full  grown  bucks  from  northern  New  England,  Mich- 
igan, Wisconsin,  and  Minnesota  will  average  slightly 

[8] 


The  White-Tailed  Deer  A 

more  than  200  pounds  live  weight.  Many  have  been 
killed  which  weighed  over  300  pounds  and  there  are 
some  apparently  reliable  records  of  bucks  weighing 
as  much  as  400  pounds.  The  does  are  smaller,  weigh- 
ing perhaps  150  pounds  for  the  average.  The  small 
Florida  Deer  weighs  scarcely  more  than  half  as  much 
as  its  northern  relative  and  100  pounds  is  a  good  weight 
for  a  full  grown  buck.  The  maximum  for  bucks  is 
scarcely  more  than  125  pounds  and  does,  of  course,  are 
much  smaller.  The  Virginia  variety  is  intermediate 
in  size  between  the  northern  and  the  Florida  varieties. 

The  Whitetail  has  always  been  a  favorite  object 
of  the  chase.  The  Indian  pursued  it  before  the  coming 
of  the  white  man  and  made  good  use  of  its  hide,  its 
horns,  and  its  flesh.  The  pioneer  settler  did  the  same, 
and  buckskin  breeches,  horn  implements,  and  venison 
steaks  meant  almost  as  much  to  him  as  they  did  to  the 
aborigines.  In  later  years,  deer-hunting  has  furnished 
fascinating  sport  for  thousands  of  Americans  of  all 
classes  in  practically  every  state  in  the  Union.  To- 
day it  still  has  innumerable  devotees  and  although  the 
season  for  shooting  is  now  limited  to  a  few  weeks  or,  in 
some  states,  to  a  few  days,  there  is  never  any  lack  of 
hunters.  The  methods  of  deer-hunting  vary  in  differ- 
ent parts  of  the  country,  but  the  most  sportsmanlike 
and  at  the  same  time  the  most  difficult  type  of  hunting 
can  be  practiced  anywhere.  This  is  the  so-called  still 
hunting  in  which  the  hunter  pursues  his  game  by  day- 
light, following  its  track  and  using  his  wits  against 
those  of  the  alert  and  often  crafty  wild  animal  until  he 
is  able  to  approach  within  shooting  distance  of  it. 
Such  hunting  requires  great  skill  in  woodcraft,  much 
physical  strength,  and  inexhaustible  patience.  It  is 
practiced  principally  when  there  is  light  snow  on  the 
ground,  making  the  tracks  easier  to  follow,  but  it  can 
be  done  by  experienced  men  when  there  is  no  snow. 

[»] 


10  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 

Where  deer  are  very  plentiful,  it  is  possible  for  the 
hunter  to  take  up  first  one  trail  and  then  another  until 
fortune  favors  him  and  he  suddenly  comes  upon  his 
game  and  gets  at  least  a  running  shot  as  it  bounds 
away.  Hounds  are  used  frequently  for  deer-hunting 
and  most  commonly  when  several  hunters  station  them- 
selves at  different  points  along  runways  known  to  be 
used  by  the  deer,  or  near  lakes  to  which  the  deer  may 
take  to  escape  the  dogs.  In  southern  states,  dogs  are 
sometimes  trained  as  "slow  trailers,"  meaning  that 
they  follow  a  deer's  trail  without  baying  and  so 
slowly  that  the  hunter  can  keep  a  few  yards  behind 
them  ready  to  shoot  if  the  deer  is  started.  Lying  in 
wait  at  salt  licks  or  favorite  feeding  places  is  another 
method  and  a  much  more  common  one  is  that  of  "jack- 
ing" or  hunting  at  night  with  a  bright  light.  Hound- 
ing, jacking,  killing  in  the  water,  night  hunting,  etc., 
are  now  in  most  states  prohibited  by  law.  All  such 
methods  may  afford  some  excitement  but  require  little 
or  no  skill  and  if  permitted  would  soon  cause  the  ex- 
tinction of  the  deer. 

No  game  animal  affords  better  evidence  of  the 
effectiveness  of  good  game  laws  than  the  White-tailed 
Deer.  In  some  of  our  most  populous  states  it  is  still 
abundant,  and  during  the  short  open  season  each  year 
thousands  are  killed  by  sportsmen.  In  Vermont,  where 
it  was  nearly  extinct,  and  in  New  Jersey,  where  it  was 
quite  so,  it  has  re-established  itself  successfully  after 
a  period  of  complete  protection.  In  1920,  over  4,000 
deer  were  legally  killed  in  Vermont,  whereas  25  years 
ago,  scarcely  a  one  could  be  found.  In  New  York  and 
Pennsylvania  it  is  probable  there  are  more  deer  now 
than  50  years  ago,  although  of  course  they  are  not  so 
widely  distributed.  In  northern  Michigan,  Wisconsin 
and  Minnesota,  deer  are  perhaps  as  abundant  as  ever 
they  have  been.  The  number  of  buck  deer  legally  killed 

[10] 


The  White-Tailed  Deer  11 

in  New  York  State  in  1918  was  8,293 ;  in  Pennsylvania 
in  1919,  it  was  2,913;  and  in  Minnesota  in  1919,  both 
bucks  and  does  were  killed  to  the  tremendous  total  of 
18,572.  In  17  states  east  of  the  Mississippi  River,  an 
estimate  of  the  number  of  deer  killed  in  1910  was  60,- 
150.  These  results  have  been  accomplished  by  well- 
conceived  and  well-administered  game  laws.  At  first 
these  merely  limited  shooting  to  certain  seasons  of  the 
year  and  protected  the  animals  only  while  the  young 
were  being  born  and  partly  reared.  Later,  more  re- 
strictions became  necessary,  such  as  shortening  the 
season,  requiring  licenses  of  hunters,  limiting  the  num- 
ber permitted  to  be  killed  by  any  one  hunter,  regulating 
interstate  commerce  in  game,  prohibiting  the  sale  of 
venison,  and  wholly  prohibiting  the  killing  of  does  and 
fawns.  The  so-called  "buck  law,"  by  which  only  males 
can  be  legally  killed  at  any  season,  thus  completely 
protecting  the  does  and  fawns,  is  on  the  statute  books 
of  about  half  the  states  and  there  are  fifteen  states 
(including  Illinois  and  Indiana)  in  which  deer  hunting 
is  entirely  prohibited  for  a  period  of  years. 

Another  recent  development  has  been  the  estab- 
lishment of  both  public  and  private  preserves  and 
game  refuges.  Game  farming  is  also  practiced  suc- 
cessfully and  deer  are  kept  in  semi-domesticated  condi- 
tions in  large  enclosures  and  sold  under  special  regu- 
lations for  their  meat  or  for  restocking  and  propaga- 
tion purposes.  With  the  good  laws  now  in  force  and 
with  the  demonstrated  capacity  of  the  deer  to  thrive 
in  limited  areas  in  close  proximity  to  man,  there  is 
every  reason  to  hope  that  the  White-tailed  Deer,  per- 
haps the  most  attractive  of  all  our  game  animals,  may 
remain  a  feature  of  our  woodlands  for  many  years  to 
come. 

WlLFBEO  H.  OHOoon, 

Curator  of  Zoology. 


till 


12  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 


BOOKS  AND  ARTICLES  ABOUT  WHITE-TAILED  DEER 
Caton,  J.  D. — Antelope  and  Deer  of  America  (New  York,  1877). 

CoBY,  C.  B. — Mammals  of  Illinois  and  Wisconsin,  pp.  60-66  (Field 
Museum  of  Natural  History,  Pub.  No.  lo3,  Zool.  Series,  Vol. 
XI,  1912). 

Lantz,  D.  E. — Deer  Farming  in  the  United  States,  pp.  1-20  (U.  S. 
Dept.  Agric,  Farmers'  Bull.,  No.  3.30,  10O8). 

Lydekker,  R.— The  Deer  of  All  Lands,  pp.  249-267    (London,  1898). 

Merriam,  C.  H. — Mammals  of  the  Adirondack  Region,  pp.  107-138 
(Trans.  Linn.  Soc.  N.  Y.,  Vol.  I,  1884). 

Nelson,  E.  W. — The  Larger  North  American  Mammals,  pp.  4.56-458 
(Nat.  Geog.  Mag.,  Nov.,  1916). 

Roosevelt,  Theodore — ^The  Deer  Famih^,  pp.  65-97  (New  York, 
1903). 

Seton,  Ernest  T. — Life  Histories  of  Northern  Animals,  Vol.  I,  pp. 
68-113   (New  York,  1909). 


The  White-tailed  Deer  is  especially  well  shown  in  the  Field 
Museum  by  a  large  four-season  group  in  the  east  end  of  Hall 
16  on  the  Main  Floor.  This  includes  four  divisions  representiusr 
Summer,  Autumn,  Winter,  and  Spring.  It  not  only  illustrates  the 
deer's  habits  at  different  seasons,  but  shows  tlie  changes  in  its 
coat  throughout  the  year  and  the  growth  and  shedding  of  the 
antlers. 


ti2] 


